More than 300 years ago, makers of pisco, a clear brandy produced in Peru and Chile from a blend of grapes, used gravity to move the juice through channels during distillation.

When Pisco Portón, headquartered in Houston, constructed a distillery in Peru next to a recently purchased distillery built in 1684, it employed the very same concept.

"We wanted to stay true to the old-fashioned techniques," said Brent Kallop, 33, president of Pisco Portón and son of the brand's founder. "Our master distiller has always felt that pumps alter the characteristics of a liquid, so the new distillery is 35 feet tall at its highest point."

Kallop said it's taken some $40 million to bring the product to market. Pisco Portón launched in New York City, Houston and San Francisco in March 2011.

"Texas is actually our best market," Kallop said. "Maybe it's because Texans are interested in experimenting with new things, or because of the strong Latin American influence here. Pisco's often compared to tequila, but we think it's smoother than tequila, and more flavorful than vodka."

By then, Brent Kallop had spent several years in Lima as the company's financial manager and had come to appreciate pisco, which is used to make Peru's national drink, the pisco sour.

His family bought the country's oldest distillery that year, which was producing 100,000 liters of pisco a year.

"We decided early on not to go after the local market, because we didn't want to crowd out small local producers," Kallop said.

To up production to some 900,000 liters annually, the Kallops invested some $200,000 to improve the existing 1684 distillery and then added capital to build a distillery next door.

The operation now includes 75 acres used for vineyards and the distilleries in Ica, Peru, which is that country's winemaking region.

"One of our first steps in the U.S. was to line up distributorships, and we were fortunate to line up three," Kallop said, "considering we were a new company and had no track record. But the distributors were willing to work with us because we had a strong financial commitment to make this work."

Pisco Portón also partnered with one of the world's leading pisco experts early on. Johnny Schuler, a Peruvian restaurateur and wine expert, hosts a weekly television program in Peru that focuses on pisco. Schuler is the company's "master distiller."

Revenue climbing

According to Kallop, Pisco Portón's first-year revenue totaled some $1.5 million, and the company is on track to double that in 2012.

To sell the product, Pisco Portón has 28 full-time salespeople in the U.S.

"We're focusing our marketing now on tasting events," Kallop said. "We did about 2,000 sampling events last year, mostly in liquor stores. This year we'll do closer to 2,500."

Kallop said the brand is carried in roughly 50 liquor stores in Houston, including Spec's, and about 100 restaurants. Some of those are Americas, Arcodoro, Up Bistro and Latin Bites.

"Right now the choices for pisco are limited in this country, and we wanted to go with Pisco Portón because it's a premium brand," said Carlos Ramos, co-owner and beverage manager for Latin Bites, which features South American food. "Our most popular cocktail is the pisco sour, and we sell about a thousand of those every month."